How to Buy a Hot air Balloon
When it comes to buying a Hot air Balloon there are plenty of options to choose from and it is very similar to buying a car. Depending on what you are buying a balloon for you may need a small hot air balloon for Private ballooning to enjoy with friends. Some people buy balloons to take part in serious Competition Ballooning and others buy balloons to turn into a business and fly Passenger carrying balloons paying passengers.
Kubicek Balloons manufactures all types of Hot air Balloons of all shapes and sizes designed to suit every need. This page will describe the process of ordering a new balloon through Kubicek Balloons UK from the initial visual concepts through to test inflation and delivery.
Contacting Us to request a Quote
The first thing you should always do is to contact us with your requirements. We are always happy to speak to anyone from experienced balloonists to people looking to get involved in the sport as a hobby or for marketing purposes. If you are just looking for a quote or would like to see what your concept will look like our designers will look to design a balloon to suit your requirements. On our website we have Design Sheets on all our Balloon envelope pages, why not design your ideal balloon and send it to us?
Receiving the Visual
Once we know what you are looking for our designers set about designing a 3D visual showing multiple angles of the balloon. This gives you an idea of what the Hot air Balloon will look like before manufacturing begins. Sometimes the visual can be used to tweak the design slightly to suit its purpose to ensure it is perfect to you. Once you are happy with the design you will receive a quote detailing all the parts of the Balloon and Equipment requested.
Ordering Your New Hot air Balloon
Once you are happy with the visual and the quote and would like to proceed we will speak to the factory to confirm production times, this can vary with factory production and envelope size and other parts to the order. To proceed with the order we will ask for a 50% Deposit to be made so we can begin construction of your the new Hot air balloon.
Manufacturing the Hot air Balloon
After the order has gone through the Kubicek Bell will ring in the factory. This has been a tradition in the factory from its earliest days and let’s the staff know another Kubicek Balloon has been ordered. The production team allocate a specific slot to the balloon envelope and if relevant to the basket and burners to meet the timeframe agreed at the point of sale.
The fabric is made ready at our Textile Mill to be used on the construction of the Balloon unless Hyperlast is being used where we order the requested colours in. Once the factory has received the fabric from the Mill the individual panels are then cut to suit the Balloon model and put in order ready to be sewn. Then the seamstress tasked with making the balloon begins their magic to produce the Hot air Balloon.
While the balloon is being made the Balloon requires to be registered with the appropriate aviation authority in the UK’s case the Civil Aviation Authority and the paperwork is processed by us to ensure it is correctly completed (no charge for this service unless a special registration is requested).
Test Inflation
The Balloon has been built and is now ready to be seen for the first time. It is during this inflation final checks are done by the factory to ensure everything is correct. During the test inflation pictures are taken which are then sent to the customer to confirm they are happy with the balloon. Once they are happy with the balloon we ask the remaining 50% to be paid to complete the sale.
Delivering the Balloon
Once the Balloon has been paid the factory sends the balloon out to the customer which can take between 5-10 days depending on the shipping style requested, We have managed to get a balloon to the UK within 24hrs but this comes with a cost from the courier. Each new Hot air Balloon sent from the factory is given an export Certificate of Airworthiness (Form 52) and all supporting Documents and Manuals. When the balloon arrives in the UK you then need to arrange the balloon to be Inspected by a BBAC and CAA approved inspector for the initial Airworthiness Review Certificate (We can help find a suitable inspector to help you with this). Finally you will need to ensure the balloon is insured and then you are ready to fly.
